U. commencement upsets traditions

A lot of students are upset about the changes made to the
University's commencement ceremonies. We can't blame them. The
University is an old school, rich with traditions and its own
colorful mythology. The traditional ceremonies were a part of that
tapestry. However, this is not the first move the University has
made away from its traditions, and it certainly will not be the
last. In fact, this stage of the University's existence really
began back in 1982, before many of us were born. That was the
beginning of the union of the various residential colleges — e.g.,
Rutgers College, Livingston College, etc. into one. This merger was
completed in 2007, with the creation of the School of Arts and
Sciences.

Many of us were not even students at the University when the
School of Arts and Sciences was formed, so it is odd we have such
nostalgic yearnings for something we never had in the first place.
Still, we cannot help our feelings. As students at the University,
we want to feel connected to the tradition. We want to be embedded
in the school's history. Unfortunately for us, we never really had
a shot at that. Traditions like breaking the clay pipes at
graduation may seem small, but we do not believe we're making
mountains out of molehills. Little details like this are important
because of their symbolic weight.

It's difficult to be saddled with the weight of starting new
traditions. Grudgingly, we admit it makes sense for the University
to change the commencement ceremonies. Whether we prefer the old
structure to the School of Arts and Sciences, this is what exists
now and accommodations must be made. In terms of efficiency, this
new commencement ceremony is the way to go. In time, this will
become the new tradition and years down the line, students will be
upset when it, too, changes.

Everyone has felt it before — the longing for something we've
never even had. It's never pleasant watching old traditions die in
favor of new ones. If there were some way to make commencement more
personalized, and to keep the old traditions alive, that would be
great. We'd throw all of our support behind it. But, as it stands
now, this is what we get. That doesn't mean we can't be
dissatisfied with it, though.